KINGSTON, R.I. – Nov. 13, 2026 – Kirk Yeager, senior forensic examiner of explosives for the FBI, will return to the University of Rhode Island for the 13th time on Friday, Nov. 20, to discuss explosive topics and literature as part of the University’s ongoing fall Forensic Science Partnership lecture series.
Yeager’s lecture, titled “Whatever happened to Ragnar?,” will be held in Room 100 of the Richard E. Beaupre Center for Chemical and Forensic Sciences, 140 Flagg Road, on the Kingston Campus. Yeager will talk about Ragnar Benson, the survivalist author who penned books on explosives that were frequently investigated by federal authorities. Books by Benson—which wasn’t the author’s real name—were pulled from mainstream distribution after Congress passed legislation restricting the distribution of explosives-making manuals with intent to commit crimes following the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
The lecture series welcomes many speakers representing specialized areas of forensic science who present their real-life experiences within their fields. The seminars are offered for credit but are also open to the public at no cost. Those who cannot attend in person may view Yeager’s lecture live online.
Yeager, a frequent speaker during URI’s annual Forensic Science lecture series, has more than 30 years’ experience with explosives and improvised explosive devices. He has presented more than 250 lectures at conferences and international meetings.
Yeager has worked for the FBI since 2000. In that time, he analyzed several high-profile cases, including the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the Oklahoma City bombing, the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, and the deadly explosion at the Accurate Energetic Systems manufacturing plant in Tennessee in 2025.
Yeager’s lecture will be followed by a talk on Dec. 4 by Gregory Emerson, forensic scientist for the Rhode Island Department of Health, about forensic drug analysis. A Dec. 11 talk by Chicago-based attorney Gil Sapir on forensic science and expert witness testimony will conclude the series’ fall schedule.
A full schedule and past recorded lectures can be found on the URI Forensic Science Partnership’s website. To be added to the Forensic Science Seminar Series’ email list, contact james.bessette@uri.edu.